Saturday a.m. stuff

by Adam J. Morris on May 3, 2008 8:36 AM CDT

First three game winning streak of 2008 for the Rangers. At 12-18, they have the same record after 30 games as they did last season. And they are only one game back of the Mariners in the A.L. West.

Evan Grant's game story talks about Josh Hamilton's incredible catch of Jack Cust's 7th inning blast as the key play of the game, and I have to say, it is one of the more remarkable defensive plays I've seen, probably the best defensive play of the season.

Still...yesterday's game isn't one that leaves you with a real warm and fuzzy feeling. Vicente Padilla was erratic, Joaquin Benoit and C.J. Wilson both had trouble throwing strikes and made things a little scarier than they should have, and the offense didn't do a whole lot. The optimistic would say that those are the types of games good teams win, games when everything doesn't click but they still grind it out. The pessimistic would say that yesterday's game is indicative of a team that isn't real good.

Josh Hamilton is the only Ranger to play in each of the first 30 games. Not the guy you'd have expected we'd be saying that about.

Brandon Boggs is 6 for 12 since being called up, and with Marlon Byrd likely going on a rehab assignment this weekend, and being close to getting activated, he could force the Rangers into a tough decision.

Boggs is essentially replacing Byrd as a righty-hitting backup outfielder...although Boggs is a switch hitter, he hits LHPs better than RHPs. The Rangers have struggled against lefties all season, which is why Chris Shelton got called up earlier this week, and if the team thinks Boggs can continue to contribute against lefties, he may well stick.

And if Boggs sticks, that could spell the end for Ben Broussard in Texas. Broussard, a guy hand-picked by Ron Washington to be the team's first baseman this season, is hitting .159/.225/.268 on the season, and has been underwhelming defensively. In terms of VORP, only 9 major leaguers have been worse than Broussard this season. Brad Wilkerson, being paid about the same as Broussard by Broussard's former team, has already been cut loose despite putting up better numbers.

Letting Broussard go means committing to a Chris Shelton/Frank Catalanotto platoon at first base, something that the Rangers seemed reluctant to do this offseason (which is why, of course, they went out and got Broussard in the first place). The other option would be to have Jarrod Saltalamacchia play some first base again, but the team seems committed to keeping Salty behind the plate.

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Ben Harrison

I’ve been looking at Frisco box scores lately, and I’ve been seeing that Harrison has been doing pretty well lately. I was wondering what he projects to and how is he in comparison to someone like Mayberry???

by hinduplaya on May 3, 2008 8:47 AM CDT 0 recs

I don't see Boggs sticking at the expense of Broussard.

Interesting thought, but it would be the biggest surprise of the season thus far.

by rooster on May 3, 2008 8:52 AM CDT 0 recs

me either

but the way some younger players are, they don’t handle being sent down too well. though i dont think thats an issue with boggs. he seems to have a decent head on his shoulders.

i just dont see the rangers willing to eat broussards salary

"When we're mad we'll use our words. Then the rest of the world will play nice with us. And the only boom-booms will be in our pants." - Ralph Wiggum

by rentz on May 3, 2008 8:56 AM CDT up 0 recs

They'll wait another month or two

before they drop Broussard. That way they can say they gave him every chance and they won’t feel so much buyer’s remorse (ie feeling they let him go too early.)

As for Boggs he’s done better than anyone expected but he needs to play everyday for his continued development. Management needs to ask him to work on a couple specific things when he goes back down, but tell him he did very well and to keep it up. That way he’ll force their hand when a spot opens up at the All Star Break.

Boggs’ emergence and Murphy’s continued good play hopefully mean that Bradley will be dealt for prospects and one of Cat or Byrd will be gone next season. Though as great as he’s been I really hope at some point this season Cruz is given one last look. Maybe, finally, hopefully he’s got his swing and pitch selection at a point where his production at AAA can translate to the bigs. I don’t want to give up on his prodigious talent without one final good look.

by Hull Fan on May 3, 2008 9:26 AM CDT up 0 recs

why deal Bradley?

I still don’t get this line of thinking.

by Garcia on May 3, 2008 10:32 AM CDT up 0 recs

Two reasons. First there’s no guarantee he’ll remain healthy or want to re-sign if Washington is fired. Second, because he could fetch a prospect haul like Gagne did last year and I’d rather pick up a good AA or AAA pitcher than keep Bradley. Especially if one of Boggs, Cruz or Mayberry is ready next season.

by Hull Fan on May 3, 2008 10:56 AM CDT up 0 recs

I don't know that

Bradley will bring in a haul like the Gagne deal.

There is no such thing as global warming. David Murphy was cold, so he turned the sun up.

by SarasotaRanger on May 3, 2008 6:11 PM CDT up 0 recs

bradley

I think it all comes down to how productive he is, and what other outfielders/dh’s are on the market. At the time last year gagne was the best reliever on the market, so he brought a big return.

though i wouldnt be opposed to keeping milton around if he can play outfield defense like he used to once his leg heals up.

"When we're mad we'll use our words. Then the rest of the world will play nice with us. And the only boom-booms will be in our pants." - Ralph Wiggum

by rentz on May 3, 2008 6:16 PM CDT up 0 recs

+1

I don’t expect Bradley’s value to be this high all season. It’s not like we’re going anywhere, so why not see what we can get for overachieving veterans who aren’t going to be part of our future most likely?

by philkid3 on May 3, 2008 10:08 PM CDT up 0 recs

Hamilton

didn’t get to see last nights game, so i watched the recap on mlb.com and that was a great catch. that thing looked gone when it left the bat and somehow he ran all the way to the wall and made that catch…amazing

"When we're mad we'll use our words. Then the rest of the world will play nice with us. And the only boom-booms will be in our pants." - Ralph Wiggum

by rentz on May 3, 2008 8:55 AM CDT 0 recs

Amazing Catch

I would post this as a fanshot if I could link to the play directly.

You can find the replay by clicking
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2008_05_02_texmlb_oakmlb_1&mode=gameday

Then on the Video tab, and “Guardado induces double play”

It's baseball. You don't always get what you want, and you don't always want what you get. --Ed Coffin

by txranger7 on May 3, 2008 10:10 AM CDT up 0 recs

I'm having troubles with this link.

Is it anywhere else?

by rooster on May 3, 2008 11:46 AM CDT up 0 recs

Here's the link to the MLB recap

Click on the Rewind Recap, about 1:33 into it

http://tinyurl.com/6rl58d

It's baseball. You don't always get what you want, and you don't always want what you get. --Ed Coffin

by txranger7 on May 3, 2008 1:02 PM CDT up 0 recs

Firefox and MLB's change in their video presentations

Haven’t seemed to be getting along for me, however, I watched it on IE.

by venturafearsnolan on May 3, 2008 9:45 PM CDT up 0 recs

safari works too

couldnt get it to work on firefox

"When we're mad we'll use our words. Then the rest of the world will play nice with us. And the only boom-booms will be in our pants." - Ralph Wiggum

by rentz on May 4, 2008 5:07 AM CDT up 0 recs

Try clearing your cache.

Was having issues with all Flash stuff and I went to:

Tools->Clear Private Data->Clear Cache

And it seems to work for the most part (can’t fast forward for some reason).

by Requiem on May 5, 2008 8:36 PM CDT up 0 recs

On a positive note ;(

Tracy Ringolsby of the Rocky Mountain News says this:
Right-hander Jason Jennings, 0-5 with an 8.56 ERA at Texas, is winless since July 24 and on the disabled list because of forearm soreness that forced him out of his start Tuesday. Doctors say it is a residual of Jennings’ flexor tendon surgery last year and that rest will allow it to heal. Right-hander Armando Galarraga, whom the Rangers took off their roster to make room for Jennings, is 2-0 with a 1.50 ERA in three starts since joining Detroit’s rotation.

"You can't hit what you can't see" - Walter Johnson

by Haeger Champ on May 3, 2008 9:35 AM CDT 0 recs

galarraga

I’ve said this elsewhere, but if you look at his minor league numbers it indicates he’s playing way above his head right now and should be coming back down to the norm soon.

I saw him in AA a lot and while i think he’s a good pitcher i dont think he’s THIS good.

"When we're mad we'll use our words. Then the rest of the world will play nice with us. And the only boom-booms will be in our pants." - Ralph Wiggum

by rentz on May 3, 2008 9:46 AM CDT up 0 recs

Galarraga

DIPS ERA of 3.98, which would be an ERA+ of about 110 pitching for Detroit.

by Adam J. Morris on May 3, 2008 9:53 AM CDT up 0 recs

Broussard's .169 EqA

Is tied for worst in the majors (with Adam LaRoche) among all first basemen with at least 50 PA on the season.

Baseball Time in Arlington

by jamcadbury on May 3, 2008 10:05 AM CDT 0 recs

Chris Davis

could soon be in the picture for the 1st base job if he keeps hitting like he has been at AA.

Get rid of Broussard.

by dieselT8 on May 3, 2008 10:22 AM CDT 0 recs

Davis's MLE line

.262/.300/.466

http://www.baseballprospectus.com/statistics/pageTexreg.php

by Adam J. Morris on May 3, 2008 10:29 AM CDT up 0 recs

Still a better OPS than

Broussard, Cat, or Shelton (albeit in 9 ABs)

by dieselT8 on May 3, 2008 10:34 AM CDT up 0 recs

wow, look at Max Rameriez's line

Is he the latter-day Edgar Martinez?

by Garcia on May 3, 2008 10:35 AM CDT up 0 recs

Max

I say bring up Max once Laird’s traded.

Then play Saltalamacchia and Max alternatingly between DH and C.

Go Strangers.

by hightowersmith on May 3, 2008 11:09 AM CDT up 0 recs

That said

The reason Max may be sticking at catcher in Frisco, right where management can get a good look, is that Saltalamacchia is not long for the Rangers.

He is still possibly the shiniest trade chip the team has system-wide.

But if they both stay, get them both in the linup, and keep them both rested. DH/C rotation, I love this idea.

Go Strangers.

by hightowersmith on May 3, 2008 11:20 AM CDT up 0 recs

Talk about strange

for a team to have two of its best hitters at catcher, so much so that it has use one of them as DH just to keep both bats in the lineup. That means the team is doing something really right (great at developing, finding catchers), or doing something really wrong (cannot find a decent DH anywhere else…)

Other than old Piazza, who was really just a DH, has there ever been a catcher who was a regular or semi-regular DH?

by JBImaknee on May 3, 2008 11:51 AM CDT up 0 recs

Cliff Johnson

Former Ranger great. Heh.

by robert_d_wilfong on May 3, 2008 12:14 PM CDT up 0 recs

C/DH

Mickey Tettleton had four straight seasons (1989-1992) where he was his team’s primary catcher, but also “played” the DH position 43, 40, 24, and 40 times in those seasons, respectively.

In 1993 and 1994, he split time fairly equally between 1B, the outfield corners, and C, but also saw some time at DH.

Brian Downing started out as a catcher, but by the time he was seeing regular time at DH, he’d been an outfielder for several seasons. Matt LeCroy was a backup catcher, but also played a fair bit at 1B and DH; other than Tettleton, he’s probably the closest to a real C/DH that I can think of.

"I dont care to debate with a troll." - Sharky

by RCCook on May 3, 2008 2:44 PM CDT up 0 recs

Ahem!

The Great Brian Downing.

fixed ;)

...it's the weekend, so why the hell not?

by Rodney on May 3, 2008 2:55 PM CDT up 0 recs

Chris Shelton

I’m not sure how much he DH’d with Detroit in his short stint though.

by cmkelly29 on May 3, 2008 4:14 PM CDT up 0 recs

10 Games....

in 2004 when he also caught 6 games.

In 2005, he didn’t catch at all

by Requiem on May 5, 2008 8:38 PM CDT up 0 recs

Davis

Davis’ inability to draw walks has been one of the bigger early disappoints in the Rangers minor league system so far. It seems to me that pitchers have to be trying to pitch around him to some extent. Right? I haven’t seen any of the games.

by Randy Richardson on May 3, 2008 10:48 AM CDT up 0 recs

OT OT

report saying Cuban has hired Rick Carlsile as the next coach of the Dallas Mavericks

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/8100596?MSNHPHMA

return you now to your previous conversations

yo soy Horsedooty!

I soloed in the mile high club.

by Sr Horsedooty on May 3, 2008 10:25 AM CDT 0 recs

Saturday morning

I really like the way the Rangers have used Hamilton. If Hamilton can play 155+ games this season, it would be a huge positive for him and the team in regard to him being able to stay healthy.

Cat – he’s mediocre in the field, but it’s exacerbated by a pitching staff that doesn’t strike batters out. There was a catch that Boggs made in foul territory last night that Cat probably wouldn’t have been within five or ten feet of. Going forward, I think they should only play Cat at DH and 1B.

Yesterday’s win was ugly, but as I remember last year the problem was that the Rangers would be out of games early – down 3-5 runs after the first couple of innings. This year the Rangers have been more competive and had more leads in games.

by Randy Richardson on May 3, 2008 10:45 AM CDT 0 recs

"underwhelming"

understatement of the season, Adam. That guy is fucking pathetic. He might as well go out there without a glove on.

Rangers > Nationals...for now

by RangerMoto on May 3, 2008 11:10 AM CDT 0 recs

he's been wearing a glove?

The "Electrician" was born 7/16/07 11:53 PM EDT

http://www.lonestarball.com/2007/7/16/213154/893

by LAMuscleFag on May 3, 2008 11:34 AM CDT up 0 recs

He

“plays” safe….

...it's the weekend, so why the hell not?

by Rodney on May 3, 2008 2:56 PM CDT up 0 recs

How long do the Rangers control Hamilton?

It sure would be nice to have this guy on the team for a long time. Plus, he seems humble enough to just be happy playing (even on a crappy rebuilding team).

He will quickly become the favorite of the masses, if he hasn’t already.

Greatest Inventions Ever? 1. TiVO, 2. Boobs, 3. Baseball

by willamos2 on May 3, 2008 11:12 AM CDT 0 recs

He's in his second ML season. He's got 4 more until FA.

by rooster on May 3, 2008 11:43 AM CDT up 0 recs

Maybe

one of those new fandangled Evan Longoria deals could be in order.

by robert_d_wilfong on May 3, 2008 12:16 PM CDT up 0 recs

He

Has no reason to do that. Longoria is still unproven.

by brettgardner on May 3, 2008 12:17 PM CDT up 0 recs

Don't look now...

Rangers only 5.5 games out of 1st.

Please forgive any and all typos, mispellings, etc.
Your kindess in this matter is appreciated.

by red shoe ranger on May 3, 2008 12:50 PM CDT 0 recs

would be only 3.5gms if we were in the Central

we’re also only 3.5gms back of the Red Sox and only 2.5gms back of the Yankees.

Grieve: The Yanks have struggled so far. - Lewin: Yeah, cry me a bag of money.

by WhipSmart on May 3, 2008 2:31 PM CDT up 0 recs

I've seen Broussard in Cle and Sea

and still am wondering exactly why you’d be reluctant to go with Cat instead of him. Someone would really have to explain to me what he has ever brought to the table that Cat can’t do.

Play underwhelming defense? Check.
Suck against lefties? Check.

Really, what does he do, that you can’t fill in with a guy who is already clogging your 25? Why add another guy that clogs the 25?

"Before I leave, I once again condemn the despicable buffoonery of D.J. Cahill." - Huck

by DJCahill on May 3, 2008 12:54 PM CDT 0 recs

+ 1

From one weaksister to the other. I have a feeling Cat may be a complete disaster at first though – as opposed to just being a disaster like BB.

The "Electrician" was born 7/16/07 11:53 PM EDT

http://www.lonestarball.com/2007/7/16/213154/893

by LAMuscleFag on May 3, 2008 12:59 PM CDT up 0 recs

Well...

he wouldn’t play at 1B that much. Just to give Shelton a day off every now and then. Shelton actually has hit righties as well as lefties in his career, so it’s basically just playing Cat once a week at 1B which I would much rather see than having Broussard on this team. Besides, all 3 off them should be gone once Davis is ready in July/Sept. anyway.

"The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance."-Socrates

by slc ranger on May 3, 2008 1:17 PM CDT up 0 recs

yeh once a week..

might be OK anymore than that.. ..well … major league error record here we come!!

The "Electrician" was born 7/16/07 11:53 PM EDT

http://www.lonestarball.com/2007/7/16/213154/893

by LAMuscleFag on May 3, 2008 2:08 PM CDT up 0 recs

Cat

He played 14 games at first last year, and has 107 games there in his career, so it’s not like he can’t play there. His range has been a little below-average, but he’s only made five errors at the position.

"I dont care to debate with a troll." - Sharky

by RCCook on May 3, 2008 2:34 PM CDT up 0 recs

you're right R C..

his fielding percentage at first is .992 which is better than I had expected. So I guess it boils down to the lack of range, being that the Ranger pitchers throw an awful lot of ground balls it has to be someone who’s ready for prime time. It doesn’t really matter if the hitter gets on base because of an error or because a ball just got by him and shouldn’t have hes’ still sitting on first base.At this point I’d pretty much take just about anything over Brou Ha Ha.

The "Electrician" was born 7/16/07 11:53 PM EDT

http://www.lonestarball.com/2007/7/16/213154/893

by LAMuscleFag on May 3, 2008 3:03 PM CDT up 0 recs

Botts

Wasn’t overwhelming obviously, but he hit way better than Broussard and he couldn’t have fielded much worse at 1B. How does kicking Botts to the curb in favor of Broussard make any sense? (I’ve been gone for a while, I’m sure this has been argued to death.)

by a bebop a rebop on May 3, 2008 4:17 PM CDT 0 recs

Yeah it has...

but even most LSBers who don’t like Botts and never think he will be a decent ML hitter said they would rather have him over Broussard.

You’re right it just makes no sense for Broussard to still be on this team. The guy is something like 4 for his last 50 and doesn’t have a RBI in a month. That just can’t happen from your first baseman.

"The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance."-Socrates

by slc ranger on May 3, 2008 4:30 PM CDT up 0 recs

Salary

I don’t see another reason other than cash invested. I’d actually favor that explanation over the one saying Wash has a preference for him.

Go Strangers.

by hightowersmith on May 3, 2008 4:52 PM CDT up 0 recs

The argument

I think the people sick of Botts were seeing the pro-Botts side differently than intended.

Nobody was arguing that Botts was a great 1B option this year, he’s just a better option than Broussard when you consider he could POTENTIALLY hit well.

by cmkelly29 on May 3, 2008 5:00 PM CDT up 0 recs

I hate Broussard as much as the next guy, prolly more

But if I’m Daniels, I don’t completely stick it to my manager by dumping his hand picked player one month into the season. Broussard may not deserve more time, but in a season like this, why not back your employee’s pick for at least another month.

I really don’t think salary is the issue here, either.

"For the record, I did not and do not like the Volquez trade, even though Hamilton is awesome and our best player and I think he’s going to be one of the best players in baseball." philikid3

by Brian Thomas on May 3, 2008 5:16 PM CDT up 0 recs